Fishing in Palworld 1.0 is one of the fastest ways to pull rare Pals and hard-to-find materials out of the water, and with the right party you can make the minigame almost play itself. The system rewards preparation more than reflexes, so the gear you bring and the Pals in your party matter more than your timing.
Quick answer: Ride a swimming Pal to a fish shadow, cast your rod (this uses one bait), wait for the two exclamation marks, then reel and keep the gold fish icon overlapping the green bar until the gauge at the top fills. When it fills, you catch the Pal.
What you need before you can fish
Three things are required for open-water fishing. You need a fishing rod, at least one piece of bait, and a Pal you can ride on water. Flying mounts do not count, so bring a swimming Pal to reach shadows out in the ocean or in ponds.
Fish shadows can appear in almost any body of water across the map. Cast your line so the end of the rod lands on top of a shadow, and each cast consumes one bait.
How the fishing minigame works
Once you cast and wait, two exclamation marks appear when a Pal bites. Press the same button to start reeling, which opens the minigame.
During the minigame a small fish icon slides horizontally across the screen. You control a larger green bar, moving it right by holding the pull input and letting it drift left when you release. Keeping the fish icon inside the green bar fills the capture gauge at the top. Fill that gauge and you land the Pal. A bigger green bar makes this far easier, and both your rod and your bait control that size.
Fishing rods and their bar size
There are six rods. Three unlock through the tech tree, and three come from schematics that drop randomly from world chests, dungeons, and faction base loot. Each schematic rod is a slightly stronger version of its tech-tree counterpart, giving a larger minigame bar.
| Rod | How you get it | Bar size |
|---|---|---|
| Beginner Fishing Rod (Chillet) | Tech tree, Level 15 | 1x |
| Beginner Fishing Rod (Gumoss) | Schematic | 1.1x |
| Intermediate Fishing Rod (Cativa) | Tech tree, Level 29 | 1.3x |
| Intermediate Fishing Rod (Croajiro) | Schematic | 1.4x |
| Advanced Fishing Rod (Pengullet) | Tech tree, Level 45 | 1.8x |
| Advanced Fishing Rod (Depresso) | Schematic | 1.9x |
Higher-tier rods also reduce the time it takes to pull a Pal from the water, and the Depresso version gives more line resistance so Pals are less likely to snap it off. Higher-tier rods are what let you fish the tougher expert and master spots.
Bait types and what each one does
You must always have bait to fish. Better bait costs more to craft but adds useful bonuses, and recipes unlock as you level. Simple Bait is available immediately.
| Bait | Unlock | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Simple Bait | From the start | No bonus |
| High Quality Bait | Level 22 | Improves Pal bite rate |
| Deluxe Bait | Level 38 | Increases bar size |
| Alluring Bait | Level 52 | Increases bar size and boosts drop chances from caught Pals |
Note: High Quality Bait only speeds up bites, so many players skip it and save the resources for Deluxe or Alluring Bait, which actually make the minigame easier by widening your bar.
Reading shadow colors before you cast
Shadows come in small, medium, and large sizes, but size only reflects the Pal, not the difficulty. The particle effects around a shadow are what tell you the reward is worth the effort. A plain shadow with no glow can be anything of base rarity.
| Effect | What it guarantees |
|---|---|
| Green sparkles | At least one Rainbow-tier passive skill |
| Purple sparkles | An Alpha Pal |
| Large purple shimmer / beam | The Lunker passive, which raises Defense and increases Water and Ice attack by 20% |
Party Pals that make fishing easier
Several Pals carry partner skills that stack fishing bonuses just by sitting in your active party. Combining them turns a difficult catch into a near-guaranteed one.
| Pal | Skill effect |
|---|---|
| Gloopie | Capture gauge decreases more slowly, so the minigame is less likely to fail |
| Whalaska / Whalaska Ignis | Minigame starts with a fuller gauge that also rises faster (Ignis is stronger) |
| Jelliette | Increases items dropped from fishing |
| Solmora / Solmora Lux | Makes it easier to fish up talented Pals |
| Jellroy | Increases items obtained from salvage |
| Ghangler / Ghangler Ignis | Raises the bite rate at night (Ignis is stronger) |
The hands-off auto-fishing party
Stacking the right skills makes even high-level fishing spots effortless, to the point where you can idle through the minigame and still catch the Pal. Build your party around slowing the gauge decay and starting with a fuller meter.
Fishing at your base with Fishing Ponds
If you would rather not swim out at all, you can automate fishing at your base. The Fishing Pond unlocks at Level 31 and lets you choose between small and medium shadows. Assign any Pal with the Handiwork work suitability, press Start Production, and it will fish on its own.
Each run takes about 15 minutes. When the Pal finishes, the caught Pal and any collected items are deposited in the chest next to the pond, so check there to see your haul. The Large Fishing Pond unlocks later and adds large shadows to your options.
Salvaging resources with a Powerful Fishing Magnet
The ocean holds materials as well as Pals, and salvaging is how you gather Coralum Ore, which is almost impossible to find any other way. Salvage spots appear as pieces of floating wreckage, and reaching them still requires a water mount and a fishing rod.
Some salvage points also need a Powerful Fishing Magnet, which unlocks in the tech tree in the low 60s and is crafted using Hexolite alongside other advanced materials. Interact with a spot to trigger a simpler minigame, where you press the interact button as the bar lines up with the green zone. Each successful pull consumes one Magnet and returns a handful of loot, so crafting them in batches is worthwhile.
Whether you are chasing an Alpha Pal off a purple shimmer or farming Coralum Ore, the pattern is the same. Bring the strongest rod and bait you have unlocked, stack a party built around Gloopie and Whalaska, and the water turns into a steady stream of Pals and materials with very little effort on your part.
